Look, here are two things about social media platforms. On the one hand, asking them to self-regulate and to, in effect, censor some of the content goes directly against their business model, which is to expand as opposed to contract. I think we have to be sensitive to this.
I have discerned over the past 12 to 18 months a sea change, an evolution in the thinking of these platforms. I think they are scared. They did not appreciate just how big they were getting, just how powerful a tool their platforms were. I do not think they have the confidence that they can do this on their own.
My sense, from some of the testimony they've given in various legislatures around the world, but certainly here in North America, is that they are looking for some support and leadership from government. I think they need it both for insulation, as well as for objective third party adjudication, for lack of a better term, to help direct and guide how they're going to put into place the kind of infrastructure....
With Facebook alone, just the other day I heard an interview where a senior employee at Facebook was talking about moving from having 10,000 to 30,000 people with the dedicated task of reviewing posts online. It's crazy. I think they do need government support, and they don't see that as encroachment, but as helpful intervention.